Video #31 - The Battle Belongs to Who?

In Deut. 20:3-4 God says, “Today you are drawing near for battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint.  Do not fear or panic or be in dread of them, for the Lord your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.” 

In this battle against lust, porn and masturbation have you ever felt like tiny little David up against big and mighty Goliath?  Do you remember how that story ended (see 1 Samuel 17:40-54)?  Consider this: is God any different today than He was then (Heb. 13:8; Mal. 3:6; Jas. 1:17; and Psa. 90:2)?  The God who was with David in that epic battle is the same God who is with you right now in yours.  The same power that He gave to David to defeat that giant in his life, He makes available to you right now to combat yours (2 Pet. 1:3).

God has promised to give you everything you need to fight this battle and win (Phil. 4:19).  Victory isn’t something you have to manufacture.  Hey, we’ve tried that in the past and failed miserably.  That’s why we end up feeling so discouraged and defeated.  When you and I try to beat this beast in our own strength, we will lose every time.  Scripture doesn’t say “YOU are from great stock, for greater are YOU than he that is in the world,” it says, “you are from God and have overcome, for HE WHO IS IN YOU is greater than he who is in the world” (1 Jn. 4:4)

We read in 2 Samuel 22 that “David spoke to the Lord the words of this song on the day when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul.  He said, ‘The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge, my savior … I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies” (2 Sam. 22:1-4).  Later on, in that same chapter David said that God is the one who equipped him with the strength he needed to fight the battle and win (see 2 Sam. 22:40).

Listen to what God tells Joshua.  “Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Josh. 1:9).  Guys - we truly can do all things through Christ who gives us His strength (Phil. 4:8)!  This is because it is “through (God) we push down our foes; through (His) name we tread down those who rise up against us” (Psa. 44:5).

I can vividly remember, as a five-year-old boy, having wandered too close to a bee’s nest.  They were understandably unhappy about my presence and began actively buzzing around my head.  I stood there, literally frozen in place, eyes squeezed shut - terrified and crying.  Then I heard my dad’s soft voice saying, “Son, it’s going to be alright.  Look at me.”  Too scared to open my eyes I whimpered “no.”  “Son, look – at – me.”  Slowly I opened my eyes to see dad standing just a few feet away.

He smiled, held out his hands and said, “Now slowly walk toward me.”  Once again I squeezed my eyes shut and began trembling.  “I can’t” I whined.  “Do you trust me?” he asked.  I slowly nodded my head.  “Then look at me, and begin to walk toward me.”

Reluctantly I took a tentative step toward him, never taking my eyes off of him.  Nothing happened.  The bees didn’t go ballistic and suddenly bombard me with stingers at the ready, so I took another step.  And then another, again and again until I was wrapped in my father’s loving embrace - no longer threatened by the bees.

As I think back on that event, I am reminded of Psalm 118:12-13 which says, “They surrounded me like bees; they went out like a fire among thorns; in the name of the Lord I cut them off!  I was pushed hard, so that I was falling, but the Lord helped me.” 

Can you relate?  Would you say that at times the temptations for sexual impurity surround you like bees and poke you like fiery thorns?  Have you ever felt like they were pushing you so hard that you were falling?  God is there to help you.  Through His strength you can cut them off!

___________________________________
About Steve Etner
Steve Etner is a National Men’s Speaker, Author and Purity Coach (www.thepuritycoach.com). He has authored many books, including “Extreme Mind Makeover: How to Transform Sinful Habits into God-Pleasing Patterns of Life”; “The Pure Man’s Devotional Guide: A Biblical Toolbox for Purity”; and “Are You A Super Man? Becoming God’s Man of Steel.” 

Steve’s conferences, seminars and retreats focus on what God has to say about the way we think and the impact it has on our behavior. By teaching men how to live in moral purity by equipping them with Biblical answers, Steve’s goal is for men to have a re-ignited passion for Jesus and learn how to prepare their minds to successfully overcome their temptations and thus live pure lives for Christ.